EDUCATION | EXHIBITIONS: ONE LP EXH@BCU/RHYTHM CHANGES: THIRD FLOOR SECTION 1: Gill Alexander: Musician, artist

“I had been brought up on classical guitar from the age of nine and then I had various stupid accidents to my fingers when I was about twelve which really ruled out classical guitar.   

I went on to harpsichord for about four years then I went to art school - Chelsea Art school, and I got into blowing instruments like, you know - clarinet and alto.   

And I started The Temperance Seven at Chelsea and was playing banjo - which was incredibly boring - so I left and of course they shot to stardom after I left (laughs).   

But I heard Gerry Mulligan - I think it was in the mid 50's - and that was just like a starburst.   

It was incredible because the music was without chords and I could hear these lines going along and it reminded me so much of the harpsichord music that I'd been playing.   

I rushed out and I bought this very ancient LP, which is all yellow as you can see.  A favourite one on this LP is ‘Soft Shoe’.  I do have another one, another LP somewhere which has 'Line for Lions' which I absolutely adore as well.   

It's so nice that I still have this LP and it's still playable.   

That just turned me onto modern jazz - straight away, I sort of never looked back - I didn't look back at Temperance Seven either!   

That's really how I sort of got into jazz in that way, but I didn't actually buy a double bass till I was about 25.   

It was my father who was always very interested in all instruments who told me that there was a shop in the High Street somewhere and he said 'Oh there's a double bass going there for £12.’  

It was a little chamber bass with great thick strings which had all ripped and were very rough - gut strings - £12.   

So I saved up for this and I bought it. I think it was 1960 and I wasn't doing very well at all with my painting.  I was, you know, quite desperate - I wasn't making any money at all. 

I was doing all sorts of jobs .. anything at all ... like sign writing or cleaning picture frames, anything at all.  I was hardly making any money at all and starving away.   

So I was so thrilled to get this instrument.  I just played and played and played.   

I put on records... played to records.  And, of course, because my parents had always been interested in jazz and always used to play jazz on their gramophone I was interested in jazz and I could tell how many bars were in a 12 bar blues.... that sort of thing so I was able to hear the chords going and recognise a lot of the tunes on the LPs that I had. 

After a fortnight this friend of mine came, this guitarist, came along and he said ' Oh, there's an ad in this magazine I've got, it's called The Melody Maker, and somebody wants a bass player for a gig - for tonight'.  

So I said 'Don't be ridiculous I've only had this for a fortnight, how can I possibly...'   

He said ' Well it's worth 7 and 6'! - and that was more than I earned in the week before so I said ok.   

So the bass didn't have a cover, and I didn't have a car so I just got on a number 22 bus, with it standing on the platform and me holding it, and went to this place - Parsons Green I think it was - and went to this little hall and I played in this little band, a Dixieland band, and found the guys in the band didn't seem to know how long a 12 bar blues was.   

So I thought 'Well, if they can earn all this money and not even play properly I'll continue so I did - and that was it really!” 

We spoke a while longer - Gill recounted playing with many of the leading American musicians - including Sonny Stitt. 

“He wore a huge white stetson and drank lots and lots of water - I think that’s what killed him!" 

Mr. Stitt had given up alcohol. 

Gill Alexander: At home, Needham, 23 February 2016 

Gerry Mulligan: The Gerry Mulligan Quartet Volume 1 released 1952 

Gill Alexander-Levin (Artist and Tithe Barn Music/Arts venue, Norfolk)